15/11/2009- trip to Temburong

Last sunday it was our last activities with BEACA. We went to Temburong to experience the canopy walk at Kuala Belalong. Beside that went to the waterfall and Temburong Longhouse.
I have learned a lot from this trip and the experience was very valuable towards me. Thus I must applied it for my future own behavior.

First thing first I have learned to overcome my frighten of height during the canopy walk. Like what Dr Asmah said Canopy walk was just the small part of our life. Still more obstacles will be coming toward us and we have to get ready for ir. Futhermore what amaze me more was when we visiting the Longhouse. I dont expect that this kind of house was still use until now. The guider told us that there were sixteen families in this longhouse and ofcourse they related eachother. Moreover the Temburong people also getting advance in technology because from what we have seen when visiting there, was a group of adults and teenage gathered together to surf the internet by laptop on Wireless. My friends and were quite surprise to know that eventhough they were far from Bandar Brunei, they still knew what happening overthere. From that moment i realised that we dont judge the book by its cover. Although they still adapted their ancestors culture that was to live with whole family in one house but along the ways they also dont want to be lose in knowing technology nowadays. I also one of the trip organizers together with Syahir and Malik. We were asked to book a boat to Temburong and we did it.

For this trip each one of us have to pay $12. $10 for boat but will return after the trip and $2 as usual for drinks and bus. Since we were not familiar with Temburong District and dont know where to go, Dr Asmah hire a tour guider. This women was worked under one company and shes the one who will guide us where to go. From my view doing this business will giving a lot of advantages like giving more job to temburong people. Not only that, most of the workers was the Iban people. Our tour guiders was Iban, the temuai also own by Iban people. Im quite surprised to see how the Iban people worked to support their family. Not only thatwe also met some fisherman. Fisherman was one of the common job in Brunei. they then sell their fish to market and sometimes for their familiy.

Meanwhile, I also looking that most of the buildings in Temburong town had been renovate. This maybe for the comfortable of tourists and Temburong people. Moreover, most of the houses there was Bungalow but I also could see that in one house, there were more than 2 cars. There was this one house that im quite surprised to see because it was too old and not comfortable to live on but still this one family live on there. Maybe because they cannot afford to buy a house and rather stay there but it might dangerous to them especially when it comes to bad weather. Government should concern about this because it could showed to tourists that Government did not care to Temburong people. Apart from that Temburong also had became tourists attraction and this could brought benefit to Brunei tourism. Some renovation was also done in Ulu temburong to made the tourists more comfortable. Thus from there i could see that Brunei had made improvement in their tourism and able to seize the attention of other countries people to visit here.

From our departure till our arrival to Ulu Temburong, there were a lots of plants and animals we acrossed by, somes that i can remember was like mangaris (a tree used to made gasing- a traditional games play by Bruneian People), Baka and even we found a Dusun owned by people there. We also see some tree that give out orange and red flower and ofcourse we cannot find it in Brunei Muara town. When I searched through internet animals like Hornbills, proboscis monkey, Macaques and monitor lizards could be seen at Ulu temburong but that day I never seen one of them.

For our organisation that day, our boat was kind a late due to some technical error happen. Bus also late because they have to wait some friends. Drinks were provided by refreshments and foods we have to bring it own our own. but overall our activity run smoothly and everyone enjoy it.

As for myself, this Temburong trip had given me more experiance, Brunei had opportunity to became a great tourism country only if we made more effort on it. Seeing the Iban and Tenburong people made me realised that how they worked very hard to support their families and we should thank god that we have the privilege given by government especially in education. So use this opprtunity to study hard and improve our country. We also should be happy to live in town that supplies electricities, Shopping area, cinema not like in Temburong where we cant find this. To conclude trip to Temburong had slightly change my view of Bruneian people that not all of them enjoy to what have been given by government. Somes still suffered and have to work hard so that can support their life.

Photos to be upload by photographers of that day on Groupmail.